Prospects for FIFA Reform at Transparency International

In 1983, upon learning that that the 1986 World Cup was assured to be
awarded by FIFA to Mexico even before the process had been completed,
Henry Kissinger is reported to have said, “The politics of FIFA, they
make me nostalgic for the Middle East.” The decades-long on-again
off-again concern about corruption and a lack of transparency in FIFA is on again, and this time, it looks like it will remain a prominent issue that requires some sort of resolution.

That FIFA has governance problems is now generally recognized, even by Sepp Blatter, FIFA’s president, who has promised
to present a reform agenda in late October. In a recent report,
Transparency International has helpfully provided FIFA with a blueprint
for many useful reforms. However, because FIFA lies outside the reach
of virtually any means of accountability, we should not expect
meaningful reform until strong mechanisms of accountability are in
place. This post explains what such mechanisms might look like.

About This Blog

This blog is my professional notebook for commentary and analysis related to sports in society. My main interests are in the governance of international football (soccer), the governance of college athletics and sport as a laboratory for social science research.

In case you are curious I support Arsenal and St. Pauli, and of course, the mighty Colorado Buffaloes.